Injured Officer
by CSIHuntermom
Summary: Set around season 6. I wrote this a while ago as a prompt on TALK CSI.


**A/N **I wrote this years ago as a prompt on TALK CSI. Just thought I'd publish it here while I finish up some other things I'm working on. No beta this time. All mistakes are mine.

Set around season 6

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><p>Injured Officer<p>

He was surprised how quickly his lunch came back into his throat as he found himself suddenly throwing it all back up.

Maybe it was the heat, the stench of the dead corpse, or the fact that the DB was a child; an infant under the age of one. Whatever it was, the churning in his stomach wouldn't let up. He threw up again, but this time, there was an audience.

"Dude, are you okay?" CSI Sanders asked Detective Lou Vartann as he wiped his mouth.

"Yeah, I'm fine, I ….I …. I," the detective couldn't get out the words. He didn't want to even if he could. He didn't want everyone to know that he threw up at a crime scene.

"Okay then, what do we have?" the CSI asked looking at the now pallid detective.

"The mother called it in; she said the youngest daughter…. Emily; was missing from her crib. The mother heard the baby cry and rushed out here as soon as possible. The cries stopped and it was too late. Captain Brass is with the family now." The detective looked somberly at the CSI after reciting his notes.

Both men surveyed the scene. The child was found inside a tree house not more than three feet off the ground. The house stood against an old, tall and ragged oak tree near the front driveway of the family from Seven Hills. One side of the building was open making for easy entry. CSI Sanders proceeded to climb into the house. Detective Vartann remained with his feet on the ground.

Inside the tree house it was a different story. Bugs swarmed near the body. The smell of feces permeated the air filling the small structure.

"Give me hand here?" The CSI called to the detective shortly after climbing into the small space. "The Coroner just arrived and I need to process the scene. Can you help me take her out of here?" he asked.

"Ummm yeah, sure," The detective hesitated.

The idea of both men climbing into a space meant for children was beyond him, but if it meant that he was away from the house all that much faster, then he was all for whatever it took.

The smell hit him again, that smell of dead flesh, and whatever was excrement remained in the diaper of a 9 month old, and the stale smell of a small space that hadn't been used in awhile.

Lou's mind quickly flashed to his family, or his impending family. He knew he wouldn't want to be the recipient of that phone call telling him and his wife that their child was found dead.

He watched CSI Sanders crouch in the corner and riffle through his CSI field kit. The CSI donned gloves to touch the child.

Greg Sanders practically crawled over to the edge of the small building to give a hand to the coroner.

All the detective could do was watch. His body was crowded out of the way in the tiny space. His head was scraping the roof and his knees were about to touch the floor. His back began to ache from stooping over.

He felt helpless in the transport of the child from the scene to the vehicle of the Clark County Medical Examiners Office. He just stood by and watched like a slow motion movie.

After the coroner had taken the body, something happened. Lou felt his world shift slightly.

At first he thought the small building was going to collapse with the weight of two grown men inside it.

But, that wasn't the case. He overheard the father say that the tree house was a solid as they come. It had been in that same spot for almost 10 years.

Lou's head began to spin. How could he have vertigo when he was only three feet or less off the ground?

He didn't have a chance to answer because before he knew it, the ground was coming towards him at amazing speed. In the blink of his eye, he was lying on it.

"Hey, are you alright?" Sanders asked hearing Lou's body crash to the ground.

"Man, it just isn't your night is it?" The CSI joked.

"Yeah, I'm okay," Lou answered weekly while raising his hand up to his head.

Lou tried to get up by propping his body up on his elbows, but some unseen power forced him back down to the ground. All he could do was lay on the ground; helpless.

The sound of Greg jumping down from the house forced his head in that direction.

Lou heard more sounds, voices and footsteps coming closer to where he lay.

His eyes closed as he heard more voices, one in particular stood out. It was that of CSI Greg Sanders.

"Control, this is CSI Sanders, I have a 422, an Injured Officer. I'm at the Rosemont Estates in Seven Hills. No…," the CSI's voice continued while the detective felt incredibly embarrassed.

Detective Vatann's eyes closed and remained closed although he could hear what was going on around him.

The last thing he heard before he drifted off was…

"No, but he did just loose consciousness…"

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><p>He tried to open his eyes but somehow they wouldn't cooperate. All around him was silence.<p>

Finally, he pried his eyes open and took in his surroundings.

They were completely different than the crime scene. He was lying in a hospital bed, in a hospital gown with an IV in his arm.

Anger, frustration and sheer embarrassment filled him.

Then he saw her, his wife Catherine. She was sitting in a chair next to his bed. Her bulging belly eased his _somewhat_ irrational fears about his family. His impending family was right where they should be, tucked safe inside her womb.

"Hey," she smiled at him. "You are alright?"

"Yeah", he weakly smiled back at her.

"That's quite some bump you have," she commented as her hand went to soothe the bump on his forehead.

"I feel… I feel… so…," he started.

"Embarrassed?" she finished with a small laugh.

"NO!" He winced at her.

"Hey, I don't need to be here you know," she said returning the same look to him.

"I'm just glad you are okay, I mean it's not everyday a detective vomits… not once but twice, then falls out of a tree house at a crime scene." Catherine noted as she giggled some more.

"Seriously, Greg told me about it. I heard it was _some_ scene. I'm not sure I could have handled a dead infant."

"When can I get out of here?" he asked in a lighter tone.

"Not until tomorrow, you have a concussion and they need to keep you here overnight."

"HMPFFF," was his reply to her comment.

She reached for his hand and placed it in between both of hers. "It's for the best Lou. Look at it this way, its better you do this sort of thing now than in front of our children," she winked at him.

"Do me a favor," he asked.

"Sure, what is it?" Catherine replied with some concern.

"Don't tell anyone about this, I feel bad enough as it is," he practically pleaded with his wife.

"It's too late I'm afraid, Once Greg Sanders is involved, it's all over." Catherine's light-hearted comment made him smile.

She watched him wince as his hand left hers and rubbed the now throbbing bump on his forehead.

"I should go."

She leaned into him. He felt her lips kiss him between his eyes.

"I'll check back with you later. And if it makes you feel better, most cops survive being injured a crime scene."

Her voice was light and good-natured.

He watched her walk away from his side and walk out the door of his room.

_Yeah, now all I have to do is live it down._ He thought leaning back against the pillow and closing his eyes.


End file.
